


Childhood Friends

by RangerFinchy



Category: Love Live! School Idol Festival (Video Game), Love Live! School Idol Project, ラブライブ! 虹ヶ咲学園スクールアイドル同好会 | Love Live! Nijigasaki Gakuen School Idol Doukoukai (Anime)
Genre: Cafes, Cooking, F/F, Light-Hearted, POV First Person, Setsuna-centric, YuuPomu, eventual angst, eventual one-sided SetsuAyu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-17 16:02:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28727796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RangerFinchy/pseuds/RangerFinchy
Summary: Setsuna's fond of the childhood friend archetype, so when she sees one that needs help wooing their main character, she can't help but try and help out.
Relationships: Takasaki Yuu/Uehara Ayumu, Uehara Ayumu/Yuuki Setsuna
Comments: 1
Kudos: 20





	Childhood Friends

**Author's Note:**

> This work was somewhat inspired by @myonglette's SetsuAyu comic series on twitter. I hope you all enjoy it. 
> 
> Thanks to a little froglin for the support when writing this.

**I. A novel idea**

The laws of anime and manga dictate that the childhood friend always loses. To some extent, it makes sense. People are always after the new ‘hot’ thing, so to speak. What the childhood friend would have in history, the new person has in mystery. She’s new; she’s intriguing. Furthermore, more often than not, there’s more than just one new potential love interest in these kinds of stories. The childhood friend and the mysterious newcomer are just two of the many archetypes that a newly introduced character could occupy. After all, there’s the reliable senpai, the sultry onee-san, the feisty tsundere, among others. All things considered; the childhood friend always has to face the odds if they want to win the heart of the main character. So, it would make sense that when a character is labelled the childhood friend, they would also be called unfortunate or unlucky.

But, to that, I’d actually argue that the childhood friend is the luckiest of all the other characters. The mere name of the archetype would suggest that the childhood friend has enjoyed the company of the main character for many years at this point. Surely, they’d also be the ones who’d understand the main character the best as well. Furthermore, the childhood friend would also be the one to spend the most time with the main character, usually due to habit or the fact that they usually live near each other. The others? All they have going for them are their unique character traits. The childhood friend also has those, you know!? With all these things taken into account, how could anyone say that the childhood friend is the unlucky or unfortunate one out of all the love interests? If anything, they have the greatest advantage, the most in their favour, and the easiest path to total control of the main character’s heart!

Yet, they always find a way to screw things up, somehow. It’s really annoying! As someone who tends to cheer for the childhood friend, it gets really demoralizing to see the lose… over and over again. The worst part is that it always feels like the childhood friends just give up when they see others try and win the heart of their main character! They’re too passive sometimes, you know? The moment they see someone else latch on to the apple of their eye, they just act so defeated, as if there’s nothing they can do to get back in the race, so to speak. But there is! You just have to want it harder! With that kind of mindset, there’s no way you can win!

What does this have to do with anything? Well, quite the sad sequence of events is occurring, right in front of me.

Practice ended a few minutes ago and me, Kasumi-chan, Shizuku-chan, Ayumu-san, and Yuu-san were at the gates of Nijigasaki

“Yuu-chan, wanna get some ice cream with Kasumi and Shizuku-chan?” Asked Kasumi-chan, excitedly.

“Eh? Sure! I don’t think I have anything to do later…” Yuu-san replies thinking about her schedule for the evening. “Ne, Ayumu-san, do we have any homework due tomorrow?”

“Ah! Um… we shouldn’t. I’m pretty sure all our homework is still due next week.” Says Ayumu-san in a thoughtful tone.

“Cool! Let’s get some ice cream, then?” Yuu-san asks her.

“Er… well…” This is your moment of truth, Ayumu-san! Accept this offer, and, hopefully, land the girl of your dreams! “I think I’ll pass for now, I’m a bit tired from practice…” Ayumu-san replies softly.

“Eh? You sure?” Yuu-san asks, a bit of worry on her face. “You okay, Ayumu-san?” She continues, inching herself closer to Ayumu-chan.

“Yeah, yeah!” Ayumu-san says, waving her hands to dissuade Yuu-san. “I’m just a bit tired.”

“If you say so.” Yuu-san replies. Continuing, she places a hand on the shoulder of Ayumu and looks into her eyes.

“Yuu-chan…” Ayumu finds herself lost in the eyes of her best friend.

“I worry about you sometimes, so don’t work yourself too hard. For me, okay?” Yuu-san tells the dazed Ayumu-chan.

Suddenly the aforementioned girl cheers up. “Mhm!” Ayumu-san replies happily. “Don’t worry about me, Yuu-chan.”

“Okey-dokey!” Yuu-san replies. “We’ll be off then!”

“See you guys!” Shizuku-chan says to us.

“Yeah! See ya later!” Kasumi-chan chimed in.

“Bye bye!” I say to them, waving. I turn to face my red-haired friend who’s quietly looking at the trio who just left. She still seems a bit out of it, doesn’t she? Here she is, the childhood friend who’s unsure of what to do when the main character has her eyes on someone else… Perhaps, for once, the childhood friend should get some help. “Ne, Ayumu-san,”

“Hmm?” She replies, “Setsuna-chan?”

“Let’s grab something to eat.” I tell her.

“Eh!?” She replies, surprised. I’d be lying if I said that this was something I normally do, so I suppose her reaction was kinda expected.

“You’re free right?” I asked her. “No schoolwork and all that jazz.”

“Well yeah…” She replies. “You’re not busy? You’re the student council president, after all.”

“Well, I’ll manage.” Not a complete lie; the workload hasn’t piled on that much. I think. And there’s always the option of delegating work to the rest of the council. That sounds perfectly reasonable, no? “Plus, we’re friends, we make time for each other, no?” I ask her.

“Friends, huh?” She pauses, thinking about something. “I don’t think you’ve called me that yet.”

“Well, now that’s not true.” I tell her. “C’mon, let’s go! I wanna grab a bite to eat! Aren’t you hungry too?” Practice can be really tiring, you know. It’s hard not to be hungry after rigorous exercise like that.

“I guess so…” She says still a bit unsure. No childhood-friend-chan! You are not allowed hesitation if you’re ever gonna get the girl!

I grab her hand. “Setsuna-chan!?!?” She yelps. And then drag her along to the nearest café. I may not be able to do anything about what happens in anime or manga, but, I know I can do something about it now.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

“So,” I say with a milkshake and burger in front of me. Ayumu-san settled for a grilled chicken sandwich and water. A bit simple, but that’s irrelevant for now.

“So?” A bit impatient, aren’t we?

“So… Yuu-san, huh?” Might as well cut to the chase.

“What… about Yuu-san?” She asks me, trying to feign ignorance.

“You like her, don’t you?” I ask back.

“Eh?!” She exclaims, clearly shocked at my statement. “She’s, she’s… just a friend?”

“I’m sorry, were you asking me or answering me?” I reply with a slight chuckle.

“Hey! Don’t laugh at me!” She yells back, somewhat indignant of my comment. “But yes… I like her… a lot…” She finally answers in a soft voice.

“I knew it!” I exclaim. “Of course, the sweet, soft-spoken childhood friend would have feelings for the main character!”

“Eh? ‘childhood friend?’ ‘main character?’ This isn’t like those anime or novels people read.” She replied. “This the real world…”

“Ayumu-san!” I stand up and say her name in a commanding tone. “That’s loser talk!”

“Eh? L-loser talk?” She replies, unsure of what I mean.

“Yes, loser talk!” I answer. “If you wish to win the heart of your maiden…”

“… my Yuu-chan…” I heard her murmur while I spoke.

“… then you can’t just give up before the battle!” I finish my line. A very cool line if I do say so myself. “So,” I begin to ask, “what have you done so far to try and get her attention?”

“Umm…” She begins to think about all her past struggles and trifles with tugging the heart strings of one Takasaki Yuu. “I guess, I’ve tried feeding her…”

“Feeding her?” Not quite the strategy I would go for, but I’m not here to judge. Yet.

“Well, sometimes I would offer her some of my food if she was interested in it. Then I would be the one to scoop the food with a spoon and feed her.”

“Awwww! How cute!” “So, how long have you been doing this?” I ask her.

“Ah, umm, I’ve been doing this since middle school.” She admits. “Though, not to much success...” she admits.

“Is there anything else you’ve been doing?” I ask her. Surely, this isn’t the only thing she’s been doing. She can’t be completely hopeless!?

“Well, not really... I don’t think there’s anything else...?” She replies, unsure of the answer. Well, I guess at this point an unsure answer is as good as no answer at all. Geez, she really is hopeless.

“How could you be so sad!?” I exclaim. All this time she’s had with the object of her affection, and all she does is this!?

“Sad!? I’m happy! I think.” She says to me. “Anyways, why do you suddenly care about all of this?”

“Because” I take a sip from my milkshake,” you, childhood-friend-san, need help in getting the heart of Yuu-san.” I tell her. “And I’ve decided to help you out!”

“Huh?” She asks me, confused.

I stand up and take both her hands into mine and look straight at her. Then I tell her, “We’re gonna get you your girl!”

The rest of that evening was spent gathering information that could help us in our mission. Initially, we decided to focus on the kinds of things that Yuu-san seemed to like.

“So, let’s start with her likes.” I tell Ayumu-san. After taking a bite from my burger, I say, “We should properly identify our points of attack.”

“You make it sound so aggressive, Setsuna-chan.” She comments. “Well, um…” She begins to think about what she has to say. “I think she enjoys it when I wear dresses…”

“Hm?” Oh? Oh. I see. “Perhaps… is this why Ayumu-san chose her live outfit?” I coyly ask.

“Eh? No!” Really now, Ayumu-san? “… Yes it is.” She admits it! How cute!

“Amazing” I look at her, eyes bright from my wonder. “You can be so cute sometimes, Ayumu-san!”

“Don’t say such embarrassing things, Setsuna-chan.” She tells me. “Anyways, she also likes eating sandwiches.”

“Are there specific sandwiches she likes in particular?” I ask her.

“I don’t think so? It’s not really something I pay attention to.” She replies.

“I see.” So, Yuu-san has a positive disposition to sandwiches. It’s unclear as to what about sandwiches she likes, but I can think about that some other time. “Besides dresses and sandwiches, what else do you think she likes?”

“Well, she obviously loves school idols.” Ayumu-san tells me. “She really loves our club.”

“She does, doesn’t she?” I reply. True enough, with everything she’s done for us, how could I not come to that conclusion? “It’s always nice seeing her work so hard for our club.”

“Yeah…” She replies.

It’s easy to tell that the reason Yuu-san supports us as school idols and helps out at our club so much comes from her love for school idols in general. As for Ayumu-san, I wonder…

“Ne, Ayumu-san, why did you decide to become a school idol?” I ask her.

“Me? Let me think…” She replied before putting a finger to her chin to think of her answer. “I guess it was when Yuu-chan decided she wanted to join.” She explains. “I guess it’s just natural to be interested in things your friends like. So, when she said she wanted to join the club, I guess I just thought I should try it out too.”

“I see…” I reply to her. “And you’re enjoying it now?”

“Yeah! Totally!” she says before taking a bite from her sandwich. “At first I was a bit worried that I wouldn’t do well or that I wouldn’t find it fun. But this has been fun so far.”

“That’s good to hear.” I tell her.

After that, we hit a bit of a lull in the conversation. There wasn’t much left to be said… That’s good to hear… What a conversation stopper! It seems that I’m quite the conversationalist.

“Setsuna-chan,” I hear Ayumu-san break the silence. “Do you really think I can do it?”

“Hm?” I ask her back, not so sure of what she means.

“Well, it’s just…” Ayumu-san takes a moment to collect her thoughts. Then she looks me straight in the eyes. With a tone of doubt, she asks, “Do you really think that I can get her to notice how I feel about her?”

I say to her, “Ayumu… She’s never gonna know if you don’t do something to try and let her know. The two of you might be best friends, but there are things that she just won’t know unless you show her. You can’t expect to just know everything about each other.” I pause and give a slight sigh. “Look, I’m not saying that this is definitely gonna work, but It’s worth a shot, right?”

“Yeah… It is, isn’t it?” She replies, the doubt in her voice not as pronounced anymore. “Okay! I trust you Setsuna-chan. Let’s do this!” She says with the most determination she can fit in her little ol’ voice.

“Yeah! That’s the spirit, Ayumu-san!”

“-chan.” She interrupts.

“Hm?”

“Call me Ayumu-chan.” She tells me. “We’re friends, no?”

“Yeah… we are.” I say with a smile that my cheeks feel. “Let’s do this, Ayumu-chan!”

And so, Ayumu-chan decided to go along with my plan. The disheartened childhood friend found a new spark to light the fire of her feelings for the main character, and me? I didn’t start the fire, but I’m the one who’s gonna try and keep it burning. Though when it comes to fire, I sure hope I don’t burn myself.

**II. Cooking with Setsuna**

People always say “The best laid plans always work out in the end.” Or at least, I think that’s how the saying goes. So, Ayumu-chan and I eventually came up with some plans for what she could do.

On the way home from our little outing, I began to think of some things she could do. Earlier, we came up with a small list of our points of attack. Supposedly Yuu-san likes sandwiches, though I suppose we can make the assumption that she’d enjoy any kind of food that Ayumu-san would make. Now that begs the question, “How can we exploit this vulnerability to our advantage?”

Hm… that sounds overly aggressive for this situation. Of course, now we’re presented with an easy way to rephrase this. As the saying would go, “The quickest way to a person’s heart is their stomach.” How about, “How can we get from Yuu-san’s stomach to her heart?” Now that sounds much less nefarious and way cooler! And it works with what we actually plan to do.

The easiest way to go about this would be for Ayumu-chan to start making lunches for Yuu-san. Not only would it lead to Yuu-san associating good lunch memories with Ayumu-chan, but, if all goes well, then Yuu-san might also start thinking that Ayumu-chan would make a good wife someday!

… perhaps I got a bit ahead of myself with that second point.

Anyways, When I get home, I should tell Ayumu-chan about my plan! Maybe we can come up with something more concrete together.

The rest of the walk home was thankfully uneventful. It’s a bit later than I’m used to, and I guess I couldn’t be bothered to deal with any surprises.

As soon as I got home, I changed into something more comfortable and took out my phone to give Ayumu-chan a call before I started on my homework. After dialing her number, I hear the distinct sound of my phone ringing

“Hello? Setsuna-chan?” I hear her on the other side of the call. “I’m still walking home, is there something you needed?”

“Ayumu-chan!” I reply. “You’re still on the road? I’ll make this quick, then. I think I have an idea of what we could do!”

“You have?” She asks me.

“Yeah! Yeah! Do you ever make lunches for Yuu-san?” I ask her.

“Errr, I think so?” She says, unsure of her answer. “Though, I don’t do it so often.”

“Perfect!” I tell her. “Let’s make her a bento, then.”

“Let’s?” She asks me. “I didn’t think you’d help me with the actual plan.” I suppose it would be normal To think that she would be doing all the work. But where’s the fun in that?

“Ehhh? Of course I’d help out!” I say to her.

“Ah, well, then after school tomorrow.” She says. Vaguely. Truth be told I have no idea what she means.

“Huh?” I ask her. “I didn’t quite catch that.”

“After school tomorrow, let’s go to the grocery together so we can pick out what we want to cook.” She explains to me.

“Oh, sure! That sounds fun! We don’t have practice tomorrow too, so I guess the timing works out…” I say, thinking if there’s anything else I need to say. “Well, that should be it. I’ll see to you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, see you!” She says excitedly.

“Have a safe walk home.” I tell her.

“Thanks! You too!” she replies before ending the call.

Eh? You too? What a weird thing to say. Though I guess she just assumed I was still walking home as well.

Well, I guess it’s time to start working on my homework. No time like the present to get these things done.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

The walk to Ayumu-chan and Yuu-san’s classroom was a fairly simple one. As student council president, it was easy for me to know what classroom they would be in, and even if I didn’t have access to the school records, there were only so many 2nd year classrooms. I would have figured it out eventually, no?

I open the door to see two girls chatting with each other.

“!” Yoba Kitagawa, the class representative, jumps at my sudden presence. Am I really that scary? “Ah! Nakagawa-kaichou, to what do I owe the pleasure?” she asks me.

“Is Uehara-san here?” I ask her, my voice, even as it always was. “There are some things that I need to… talk to her about.”

“Um, I’ll call her right away, then.” Kitagawa-san then walks towards Ayumu-chan and who seems to be Yuu-san.

“S-Nakagawa-san, you called me?” Ayumu-chan says as she and Yuu-san approach me.

“I didn’t know you had business with the president, Ayumu-chan.” Yuu-san asks the girl in question.

“Takasaki-san,” I say, acknowledging her presence. “Would you like to come along as well?”

“Umm, sure?” Yuu-san says, unsure. “C’mon, Ayumu-chan. We don’t want to keep Nakagawa-san waiting.”

“Yeah” Ayumu-chan responds simply. The two of them go back to their seats and fix their things, getting ready to leave. About a minute after, they return to the door of the room.

“Thank you, Kitagawa-san. We’ll be off, then.” I say to the class representative. With that, the three of us depart.

“Ne, Setsuna-chan, you can be really scary, sometimes, you know?” I hear Yuu-san comment beside me. “Kitagawa-san looked totally spooked by you.”

“Eh? I wasn’t that bad, was I?” I ask the two of them.

Ayumu-chan answers me, “She looked so scared talking to you.”

“Ehhh!? I didn’t know I could be so scary…” I reply. I know that I put on a façade and all, but I like to think that it isn’t that cold, you know?

“So, Setsuna-chan” I hear the voice of Yuu-san, distracting me from my thoughts, “What did you need Ayumu-chan for?”

“Hm? Oh yeah! I needed her help with something. You don’t mind me borrowing your precious and irreplaceable bestest friend in the whole entire world, do you?” I ask her.

“Hm? Well, no, not really.” Yuu-san replies. “What are you two gonna do anyways, Setsuna-chan, Ayumu-chan?”

Ayumu-chan stammered a response. “Umm… well… you see-”

“I told Ayumu-chan yesterday that I wasn’t a very good cook, so she graciously offered to try and teach me.” I noticed that Ayumu-chan was struggling to think of an answer, so I figured I’d just say what we were going to do without actually saying what we were gonna do.

“Woah! Really? That’s really cool of you to do, Ayumu-chan!” Yuu-san exclaims.

“Um, well, It’s not that much of an inconvenience and Yuu-chan likes to say that the food I cook is good, so…” Anyone would notice that Ayumu-chan was faltering under the attention that Yuu-chan was giving her.

Considering the nature of our operation, I’m gonna need a way to get Yuu-chan to leave without suspecting anything. “So, Yuu-chan, Ayumu-chan and I were going to go to the groceries…”

“Groceries? Perfect.” She tells us before handing Ayumu-chan a list. “Would you be a super cool person and do my groceries for me?” Well, that was easier than expected. “It turns out I have a ton of errands to do today and I really need your help.”

“Um, yeah, sure. We can take care of that for you.” I answer her.

“Thanks, Setsuna-chan!” She replies before turning to give Ayumu-chan a tight hug. “Thanks Ayumu-chan!”

“!” Ayumu-chan yelps in surprise. “Yuu-chan!”

“Anyways, I have to run ahead I if I wanna get my errands done soon. See you guys!” She says to the two of us before running ahead.

“I bet you enjoyed that, didn’t you?” I say to Ayumu-chan.

“Don’t tease me Setsuna-chan, there’s only so much that I can take.” The girl beside me laments.

“Fine, fine.” I reply. “So, your hair’s cute today. Did you fix it up for Yuu-san?” That comment got me a slap on the arm. I probably deserved that.

After that physical assault, she asks me, “If you’re done teasing me, shall we head to the groceries?”

I excitedly replied, “To the groceries!”

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Personally, the times when I shop for groceries are few and far between. My mother prefers to do that herself and usually lets me handle the chores at home that don’t involve food, oddly enough. So, when Ayumu-chan and I went to a supermarket near where she lived, it wasn’t much of a surprise to me that I had no idea where anything would be.

“So… tomatoes would be where again?” I ask the more experienced Ayumu-chan.

“Geez, Setsuna-chan, you’re like a total newbie with these things.” Ayumu-chan comments.

“Look, it’s not my fault they make these things so complicated.” What’s the deal with fruits and veggies anyways? They both come from plants and are more or less made of the same stuff, so why are they even called different things. Hell, what even is a tomato? A fruit or a vegetable?

“Whatever, tomatoes and onions are the only thing we need before checking out, so just follow me.” Says Ayumu-chan.

On the way to the supermarket, we decided to cook beef stroganoff this evening. Apparently, last night, she watched saw some videos about it, and, personally, all I know about it is a song from some anime I’ve seen before. Luckily, the song included everything I needed to know when cooking it.

“Did we already get the things Yuu-san asked for?” I ask her.

“Oh, I picked those up while we were going around.” She answered.

“You really have this all planned out, don’t you?” I ask in awe of her ability to do all of this.

“Well, it’s not the first time Yuu-chan asked me to do something like this.” She reasons. “Plus, this’ll make good practice for when I-” She cuts herself off, clearly embarrassed at what she was about to say.

“When you…?” I inquire, curious of where that was going.

“Do I have to say it?” She asks, dreading the inevitable ‘yes’ that she’s going to get.

“Of course! You can’t just cut off like that and expect not to get questioned.” Plus, it sounds like it’ll totally embarrassing.

“Fine…” She relents. “this is good practice for being Yuu-chan’s wife…” Ayumu-chan says softly

That’s… so… cute! Does she really think about it that often? Well now, I can’t fail her!

Out of no where I feel the incredible urge to hug her.

“Setsuna-chan!” She says, surprised by my sudden actions. “What are you doing?”

Eventually I let go. “Sorry, Ayumu-chan, I couldn’t help it. Hearing that this is something that you think about… it’s just so cute!” I pause for a second. “For what it’s worth, Ayumu-chan, I think you’d make a good wife.”

“Ehhh!?!?” The blush she’s grown on her face is quite the sight. “If I knew you were such a tease, I wouldn’t have agreed to this!”

“Well, unlucky you, you’re stuck with me until you properly woo Yuu-san.” I say to her.

“Whatever, let’s just get this over with. It’s just tomatoes and onions, right?” She asks, forgetting what she said earlier.

“Yep, as you mentioned earlier, that is all we need to get before we go.” I answer.

“Alright, let’s get this over with, then, so we can begin cooking at my place.” Ayumu-chan says.

And so, we finish our business at the supermarket and walk to Ayumu-chan’s home.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Going to somebody else’s house was never something I was used to. It’s not often that I have people who would even be willing to invite me over. It’s even less likely for me to have time for it. So, when Ayumu-chan said that we would be cooking at her place, I didn’t quite know how to react.

“You live near Yuu-san, right?” We were in the elevator of Ayumu-chan’s building, presumably going to her floor.

“Yeah, I’m just gonna drop off her groceries with her mom. Then we go to my place and cook.” Ayumu-chan tells me.

“Exciting.” I comment, unsure of what else to say.

And so, we did exactly that. The door to Yuu-san’s apartment was opened by a woman, presumably Yuu-san’s mom. She and Ayumu-chan exchanged some pleasantries, and then the groceries were dropped off. Right next to Yuu-san’s place was Ayumu-chan’s apartment. They really live right next to each other, don’t they? I suppose this would be more points in favour of the childhood friend.

Upon entering her apartment, Ayumu-chan gave me some instructions “Ne, Setsuna-chan, can you put the ingredients out on the counter? I’m just going to put my stuff away in my room.”

“Sure!” I reply. After placing the foodstuffs on the counter, I figure I could take a look around. It’s a nice quaint place, well organized, and no piece of furniture out of place. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. If Ayumu-chan is one of the residents here, then she’d definitely work hard to keep things neat and tidy.

“Is everything ready, Setsuna-chan?” I hear Ayumu-chan ask me from her room.

“The ingredients are. Where’s your pot?” I ask her while taking out two knives for us.

“It’s in the drawer to the right of the sink but let me get it.” Ayumu-chan walks into the kitchen no longer in her school uniform. “I hope you don’t mind that I changed into something more comfortable.” Currently she was still wearing the skirt from our uniform, but instead of the usual top, she had a simple pink top on with a yellow cardigan. As expected from Ayumu-chan, very cute.

“Oh, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” I comment. “Where do you keep your aprons?”

Ayumu points to the side of the stove while getting the pot that we’ll need out from the drawer to the side. “We keep them over there.”

After getting all the things we need ready, Ayumu-chan wanted to start prepping the ingredients.

“So how are your knife skills?” She asks me.

“Not the best, but I cut things well enough. I think.” It’s just slicing and dicing, right? You shouldn’t need the best knife skills for that.

“Well, can I leave you to cut the tomatoes and onions while I get the rice cooking?” She asks me.

“Sure!” I respond. Cutting tomatoes and onions, what could go wrong?

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Everything. Everything went wrong.

The tomatoes? They were completely ruined, not cut properly. How I managed to do that? Well…

“Setsuna-chan! The tomatoes don’t have to be cut that small, you know?” Ayumu-chan scolds me. It’s true. Somehow, I’ve managed to cut the tomatoes to such tiny pieces that it could be called a sauce or a slush instead of cut tomatoes.

“I’m sorry… I don’t know what came over me…” I say, a bit disheartened that I’ve disappointed Ayumu-chan.

“Don’t worry about it, I can handle the rest of the tomatoes.” She says, trying to be reassuring. “Do you think you can handle the onions?”

“Yes! Yes, I can!” I answer her with a renewed vigor. “I won’t let you down, Ayumu-chan!” They’re just onions, how hard can they be?

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Pain. All I know is pain.

“Setsuna chan, did you remember to peel the onions?” … peel?

“Come again, Ayumu-chan?” I ask, a bit confused of what she meant.

“You know you’re supposed to peel the skin off of onions, right?” She asks me.

“EhhhHHH!?” All this time… “Nobody ever told me that!” to think how much food I’ve ruined because of this. Is this why mother doesn’t want me near any food that we make back at home?

“Setsuna-chan…” The pity in her voice is palpable. “How about I just take care of the rest of this…”

“I guess… that’s for the best.” I say to Ayumu-chan.

“I’m sorry, Setsuna-chan, but I really want this to be good.” Fair enough, it was for Yuu-san after all. It had to be amazing.

“Yeah…” At this point, there isn’t much of anything for me to do… “Maybe… maybe I should go.”

“Eh? Setsuna-chan, are you sure?” I guess she didn’t consider that I can’t really help right now. “I really don’t mi-“

“Don’t worry about me, Ayumu-chan.” I tell her. “Focus on your labour of love.”

“l-lo-l-love!?” She stammers, embarrassed by my words.

“Thank you for having me, and sorry that I wasn’t much help.” I say to her.

“Setsuna-chan… don’t say that… You were plenty helpful.” She says, trying to comfort me.

“Thanks for the kind words Ayumu-chan.” For a while, no words were spoken between us, so I decided to break the silence. “You should focus on the food you’re cooking; you know? We don’t want Yuu-san’s bento to be overcooked tomorrow.”

“Yeah… I should.” She replies. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, see you tomorrow.” I start walking towards the door. “Good luck Ayumu-chan, thanks for having me over.”

“Yeah, no problem.” I hear her say.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

The rest of the evening, I found myself immersed in homework and student council duties. It’s not that I’ve been ignoring them, they just quickly pile up naturally. So, I guess you could say that I’m used to it by now. Truth be told it wasn’t finding out that I wasn’t cooking properly that bummed me out so much. I just felt so bad that I wasn’t helping, that when I wanted to help, I was more of a hindrance than a boon to Ayumu.

It made me feel like I shouldn’t have bothered… and somehow, it was a feeling I couldn’t quite shake. Even going into today, people who’ve seen me seemed to have noticed that I’m a bit off. Comments like “Nakagawa-san, are you okay?” or “Nana-chan, is everything alright?” came from my teachers and classmates. It didn’t really help the mood.

“Nakagawa-san,” I hear the secretary call me as I enter the student council room. “Someone left something for you earlier.”

“Hm? Who?” I ask, mildly surprised.

“Some pink haired girl, or was it red?” Ayumu-chan? “Can’t really remember. Whatever it was, I just left it on your table.”

“Oh. Thank you.” I respond politely.

Walking over to my table I see a small box wrapped in a pink cloth with a pattern of yellow rabbits with a note stuck to the top of it. Yup, that’s Ayumu-chan. Opening the note, it read out,

“There was a lot in the serving that we made, so here’s a portion of our work from yesterday. I hope you have a good lunch. And more than that, I hope you don’t get too disheartened from yesterday. The Setsuna-chan I know would never let a stumble in the road make them give up. Even if nothing comes out of all of this, I’m not going to give up on Yuu, just like I know you’re never going to give up on yourself.

See you at practice!

Your friend, Ayumu.”

Heh. Not quite what I expected but… really something I needed. Thank you, Ayumu-chan. You said that I shouldn’t give up on myself, and I won’t, but I won’t be giving up on you either. I’m gonna see this to the end, whether we succeed or not.

With that I dig into my lunch. Today, lunch felt a bit less lonely than usual.

**III. Words and talking**

The life a school idol lives is a difficult one. You have to make time for practicing and club activities while also having to do schoolwork and worry about all the things students would usually worry about during their time in school. Personally, I live a double life as the student council president. When I put it that way, it sounds really cool, doesn’t it?

As far as Ayumu-chan is concerned, she’s had to deal with love and all the problems that love entails. Personally, can’t relate. Though, if novels and stories are to be believed, it seems to be something every Highschool girl has had to deal with. Someway, somehow, they find themselves struck by cupid’s arrow. An object of their affection suddenly takes priority in their life, and try as they might, they just can’t shake it. As freighting as it sounds, high school maidens in love make for enjoyable stories.

My musing was interrupted by the aforementioned lovestruck maiden.

“Ne, Yuu-chan, can you help me stretch?” Ayumu-chan asked her best friend.

Now, I was taking a short break near where Ayumu-chan and Yuu-san were situated. Ayumu-chan was on the floor, attempting to stretch her core.

“Sure.” Yuu-san replied to her as she normally would. Yuu-san walked over to Ayumu-chan and begun to help her stretch.

“Thanks, Yuu-chan.” Ayumu-chan said, appreciatively.

“No problem.” Replied the girl in question.

Now, what am I doing listening in on two girls just going about their lives normally? Well, I, for one, am very interested in the interactions between these two girls. Very interested. Right now, Yuu-san was pushing the back of Ayumu-chan. I’ve sure that Ayumu-chan's enjoying it very much.

“So, Ayumu-chan...” I hear Yuu-san begin to say.

“Yeah?” Ayumu-chan asked back.

“You’ve been spending a lot of time with Setsuna-chan recently.” Yuu-san says.

“Yes, I have.” Ayumu-chan replies. I guess we have been spending a lot of time together over the past few days. “Well, you were busy, you know?”

“Yeah, I was. Sorry about that.” Yuu-san laughs. “I’m glad that you’ve been spending time with people that aren’t me...” Eh?

“Yuu-chan?” Ayumu-chan asks, confused at her friend’s words.

“Sorry, sorry. I don’t think I said that very well, did I?” No! Not at all! It’s really easy to misunderstand those words!

“No, you didn’t.” Ayumu-chan replies with a little hmph.

“My bad then,” Yuu-san laughs off, “I’m just glad that you’re making more friends, I guess.” she tells Ayumu-chan. Now that sounds more reasonable, no?

“Yeah...” replied Ayumu-chan.

“It’s just that... You’ve never been the most sociable person, have you?” Yuu-san asks her friend.

“Well, we used to be the same in that way.” Ayumu-chan tells her. Hm? Now that’s something new. Come to think about it. I don’t really know much about the two of them, do I?

“I take that you think that’s changed?” Yuu-san asks.

“Well, it has hasn’t it?” Ayumu-chan asks back. If Yuu-san really used to be like Ayumu-chan, then I guess there’s no denying that she’s changed, right? In the club, she’s always one to make conversation. She’s always the person who has something to talk about.

“Then, I guess it has.” Yuu-san replied.

A short siilence followed their words. By now, Ayumu-chan stopped stretching and the two of them were just there, not doing anything.

“Ne, Yuu-chan,” Ayumu-chan begins to ask, breaking the silence, “we’re best friends, right?”

“Of course, we are!” Yuu-san quickly answers.

“And nothing will change that, right?” If you listen carefully enough, a slight crack I her voice could be heard. Clearly her faith in their friendship has been shaken. Why? I may never know, but this doesn’t sound good. It does not sound good at all.

“Nothing will change that, Ayumu-chan.” Yuu-san reassures her friend. “I promise.” Strong words Yuu-san. I hope they hold true.

“Thank you, Yuu-chan.” Replied a relieved Ayumu-chan. With that, Yuu-san helped Ayumu-chan stand up and the two of them walked away.

That was quite the exchange that I just _overheard_ , wasn’t it? A lot to digest, that’s for sure. But it’s something I don’t have to worry about for now. I think.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Realistically, you shouldn’t expect things to happen unless you make them happen. This is especially true for humans. The wild, unpredictable creatures that they are. Sometimes they do things that would make total sense in their heads, but are actually totally insane. Something to take note of is that humans always try to be rational, but not all reason is created equal. They always do what would make sense in their heads, but how can we know what would make sense to them? I suppose that’s the kind of question that everybody asks eventually, isn’t it? That’s usualy their mistake, though. They begin to think too much into the thoughts and rationale behind others’ actions that they find themselves at an impasse of overthinking. That’s not good, is it? And, so we find ourselves at the moral of this story. Other people are weird and you should do yourself a favour and not bother understanding them.

Now, what was the point of all of that?

Well, right now I find myself in bed full of thoughts about what I heard earlier. Why would Ayumu-chan act the way she did? How did Yuu-san, internally, respond to what she heard? These questions I can’t think of the answers to. So, instead of thinking of answers I figured I would try and find them.

I haven’t talked to Ayumu-chan yet about the next phase of our plan, and I guess that would be my point of attack. Oooh _point of attack._ Makes it sound more serious than it actually is. In reality, I’m just a nosy girl snooping into the business of others for no reason other than pure interest and curiosity. Now, that just makes it sound sad. Maybe I shouldn’t bother explaining my actions. It just makes things more complicated.

I dial up Ayumu-chan's number and hear my phone ringing.

“Hello?” I hear her voice from the other side of the call.

“Hello, hello, Ayumu-chan!” I greet her cheerfully.

“Oh! Hi Setsuna-chan!” She greets back with her admittedly cute voice. “What’s up?”

“A few things actually.” I tell her. True enough, there’s quite the backlog of things that I have to talk to her about. “That is, if you aren’t busy.”

“Oh, really?” She responds. “Well, I’m not so busy right now, so let’s hear it.” Perfect

“Nice.” I tell her. “First thing’s first, how did Yuu-san like the food?”

“Oh! She liked it. She said that it was different from what she usually had, so she enjoyed it.” Ayumu-tells me.

“Was it the _only_ reason?” I ask her, suggestively.

“Eh!? Even on the phone, you’re such a tease!” She scolds me. I’m sure she enjoys it, though.

“Sorry, sorry.” I say, very much not sorry.

“So, what other stuff did you wanna talk about?” Ayumu-chan asks me. Do I ask about what I overheard earlier?

“Well, I’ve been thinking about our plans moving forward, and…” Before thinking of a decision, my mouth makes my choice for me and decides to, first, talk about what would be the actual reason I called her.

“And…?” Ayumu-chan replies, listening for the end of the sentence.

“Well, I think it’s time we move to _plan c_!”Hohoho, now her next words will be _‘Aren’t we still in plan b?’_

“ _Plan c_? How’d we get there? We’ve only done one thing so far, so we should still be at _plan b_ , right?” Ayumu-chan asks. Eh, not quite exactly what I predicted, but still along the same line of thought. The _coolness_ of my prediction sits at around 7/10 right now. How unfortunate.

“Non non, Ayumu-chan” I tell her before explaining my choice of words. “The _c_ there stands for clothing!”

“And that’s supposed to mean…?” Are you really not following yet, Ayumu-chan?

“This Friday, we’re gonna go shopping for clothes that’ll make ol’ Yuu-san’s heard go all _doki-doki_!” I say with plenty of excitement.

“Where did this idea come from?” She asks with a slight chuckle.

“Well, before, you mentioned that Yuu-san likes it when you wear cute clothes, right?” I remember she told me this on that one fateful afternoon.

“Well, yeah, but I have plenty of cute clothes already, we don’t really need to-” says Ayumu-chan before I cut her off.

“No no no. Ayumu-chan, just cute clothes won’t be enough to make a maiden like Yuu-san swoon.” I explain. True enough, if Ayumu-chan’s had cute clothes in her arsenal for years, and nothing has happened, then my point proves itself, no?

“...swoon…?” Yes, swoon! “Is this realty necessary?” she asks.

“Yes, we need something a little bit spicier! Dare I say a little bit more _rique_.” I answer her.

“ _S-sp-spicy? R-risque?_ What are you saying, Setsuna-chan?” Ayumu-chan asks me, clearly embarrassed.

“I’m _saying_ that maybe we need to up the ante a little,” I tell her, “be a bit more _ambitious_ with getting the attention of Yuu-san.”

“J-ju-just… how _ambitious_ are we speaking?” she asks, still embarrassed at the thought,

“Relax, you’re not getting anything too revealing, though maybe something that hugs your frame wouldn’t be out of the question…” Ayumu-chan in a revealing outfit feels to off-theme for her, you know? She said Yuu-san likes dresses, right? So perhaps, I could get Ayumu-chan to look at some dresses… That would be quite the sight, wouldn’t it? She’s already very pretty. If you put her in a dress that hugs her body in all the right places… Yuu-chan surely can’t resist.

My thoughts were interrupted by Ayumu-chan’s voice. “Fine.” I hear her say with much more composure than she had earlier. “I trust you Setsuna-chan.” She says with confidence.

“Really?! I figured you would need more convincing…” I reply, a tad surprised by the lack of resistance.

“Look, Setsuna-chan, you seem to be taking this seriously.” She explains to me. “And quite frankly, if you really just wanted to spend time with me, then you should have just said so.” …huh? Come again?

“… huh?” I say, my brain stopping for a moment. “You’re teasing me, aren’t you?” And so it seems the turns have tabled.

“It’s not so nice to be teased, is it?” She says, matter-of-factly.

“Fine, whatever you say.” I reply. “So, just chat me when you’re free to do this, okay?” I ask her.

“Will do! Is there anything else you needed to talk about?” Anything else, huh? I supposed I could ask about what happened with her and Yuu-san…

“Nah, that should be it. Thanks, Ayumu-chan! See you tomorrow?” And again my mouth talks before I decide on something. It really has a mind of its own. Maybe Ayumu-chan’s voice just has that effect on me. It’s not like I couldn’t stop thinking about it earlier, but somehow talking with her took my mind off of it. Realistically, I shouldn’t even be worried about these things. After all, I’m naught but a meddling high school girl.

“Thanks, Setsuna-chan! Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow.” She says before closing the call. Ayumu-chan really has a nice voice, doesn’t she?

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

We decided that Friday evening, after school and club time, would be the best time for the two of us. We were both free and, it turns out, the homework wasn’t particularly tough at the time, so it made sense to the two of us.

Right now, I was waiting by Shinjuku station, making sure my clothes were all neat and tidy. Is it weird for me to be a bit excited and anxious about this? I’m not really used to things like this, going out with friends and all, so I just want to make sure I make the most of this. I even made a plan for today! I’m pretty fond of plans, aren’t I?

Anyways, as far as my agenda for today goes, Ayumu-chan and I will start out by going down the street and visiting various clothing outlets.

Hmm… that sounds to rigid, doesn’t it? Okay! I’ll rephrase it.

We will begin looking around at all the clothing stores nearby.

Does that sound better? I hope so.

Once we’re done with that-

“Setsuna-chan?” My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Ayumu-chan’s voice… eh!? Ayumu-chan’s here?!

“A-Ayumu-chan!” I yell in surprise. “You’re here!”

“Yes I am.” She replies, pleasantly. “So, what’s on your mind?”

“Huh?” I ask, confused.

“Well, you just looked so deep in thought, so I figured I’d ask about it.” She replies.

“Ah, well, um, I was just thinking about our agenda for the evening.” I stammer out, still trying to compose myself.

 **“** Oh, my. _Agenda_. You make it sound so serious, Setsuna-chan.” She comments. “I know we have plans for tonight, but we’re along hanging out as friends, no? So let’s try and have some fun!”

 _As friends…_ that’s not something I get to hear often… It’s nice.

“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.” I tell her in response. “Let’s go?”

“Mhm!” She affirms before taking my hand and pulling me forward. Very _‘forward,’_ don’t you think so Ayumu-chan?

As we walk down the street, I take a moment to notice the outfit of Ayumu-chan. It seems she decided not to change out of her uniform, deciding instead to just cover up with a nice beige coat and stylish pink scarf.

“I like your coat.” I comment, trying to make conversation while we walk.

“Thanks, I didn’t really have much time to change into anything different, so I figured a coat and scarf would be fine. It’s nice to know I wasn’t wrong.” Ayumu-chan replies.

“Plus, it also gets pretty chilly around this time of the year, so it would make sense to cover up a bit.” While not exactly like Ayumu-chan I also found myself wrapping up a little the chilly air.

“Mhm!” She agrees. “It’s a good thing our uniforms are like this.” She says gesturing to our winter uniform’s long sleeves.

“Well, they are _winter_ uniforms for a reason. It would be weird if they didn’t keep us warm.” I say to her.

“It would, wouldn’t it?” She says back.

“Yeah…” Was all I had left to say, and so, we find ourselves back at a _somewhat_ comfortable silence. Well, at least she seems to find it comfortable.

I wonder if I should ask about Yuu-san? Would it be weird to just bring it up? It’s not like we were even talking about her or anything… Though, I guess this entire excursion of ours is to do with Yuu-san ion the first place.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! Now that I’ve thought of it once, I can’t stop!

Why did Yuu-san talk to her like that?

Why did Ayumu-chan respond in that way?

Why won’t the two of them just get together and kiss!?

All of these important questions that were stuck in my head while we were walking, that is, until Ayumu-chan interrupted my thoughts again.

“You wanna try out this store?” I hear her say suddenly.

I look to what she’s talking about and see a cute clothing boutique with some nice clothes up for display on the storefront.

“Sure.” I reply.

And so, we begin our quest to find something that make Yuu-san’s heart go all _doki-doki_.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Geez, today was such a bust. We didn’t find a single thing that Ayumu would agree to. It’s not like we didn’t find anything nice, you know. It’s just whenever we found something along the lines of… well…

_“Setsuna-chan!!!” Ayumu-chan would yell at me. “Isn’t this a little too embarrassing?”_

_“Eh? But it looks nice, doesn’t it?” I ask in response._

_“I does! It really does!” She tells me. “I just don’t think I could be comfortable wearing this, you know?”_

_Well, fair point..._

This exchange would happen every time we found something nice, so eventually the two of us decided to stop for now and grab a bite at the café nearby.

“I’m sorry Setsuna-chan, but I just can’t do this.” Ayumu-chan plops herself on the table, sulking in defeat. We just came from the counter to order our food and picked a table to take a seat on.

“Don’t worry about it.” I say to reassure her. “It’s not like I expected all my plans to go perfectly well.” Well, I did, but she doesn’t have to know that.

“Yeah...” She says, head still down. “If you say so...”

At times like this I wonder if the next course of action would be to see if she’s okay or to just stay quiet. It can be really weird. Some people like it when you show concern while others just find it annoying. Though, I guess you could say that about anything, couldn’t you? In the end all this thought was all for naught because, as expected, my mouth came to a conclusion before my brain did.

“Ne, Ayumu-chan, are you okay?” I ask.

“No.” I could barely understand her grunt, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to know what she meant.

“Is it about this evening?” I ask her again.

“No.” And came the same answer. Really, I don’t know why I asked this. The answer came to me like and overheard conversation in the club room a few days ago. I say _like_ as if that wasn’t the answer. Did I do it to make sure she wasn’t mad at me or anything? Perhaps, but I guess that isn’t important now.

“Is it about Yuu-san?” I ask, despite already knowing the answer.

“...” All that came was silence, that is, until she finally raised her head and showed me what might be the cutest sad face I’ve ever seen. It might not be the best idea to comment on that for now. “It is.”

“I figured as much...” I say, unsure of what else there would be for me to say. “You wanna talk about it?” Sometimes the worst thing to say, sometimes the best thing to say. I guess I’ll find out which one it is in a moment.

“Do I have a choice in this?” She asks with a weak voice.

“What do you mean? You always have a choice!” I scold her. In hind sight, not the best idea.

“Really? Because it doesn’t seem that way...” Ayumu-chan says to me. “Lately, it feels like everything around me has just been all over the place and I feel like I’m never in control.” Hopelessness. If she feels like she isn’t in control of her life, then she might be questioning the point in even doing anything. “It just feels like I don’t know anything anymore. A few months ago, all Yuu-chan had was me and I, her. We weren’t the most outgoing or sociable people, but we had each other and that was what counted.”

“And, now, that’s changed.” I assert.

“Mhm,” she confirms my thoughts. “Ever since we joined the school idol club, it feels like she’s find new life. Yuu-chan's found something she loves and I couldn’t be happier for her, but a part of me hates it.” She says that last part with a bit of venom. “I hate that she doesn’t just spend time with me anymore. I hate that I’m being left behind. And most of all... I hate that I even feel this way.”

“So, do you regret any of it?” I quickly ask her in response.

“I just said how much I hated all these things, didn’t I?” She asks back.

“You didn’t answer the question.” I simply stated.

“... no.” came her answer. “Even though I said all those things earlier... I don’t think I can say that I regret joining the club with Yuu-chan.”

“Good, because there’s no changing that you did, in fact, join the club.” I say to her. “But that’s beside the point. Now that you’ve said all of that, what do you plan to do about it?” I ask her.

“Well, I tried talking to her about it earlier this week...” She says, a bit emarassed by her efforts.

“Eh? You mean that conversation in the clubroom full of vagueness and ambiguity?” I ask, surprised that she even thought that she could gain any sort of understanding from the way she spoke then.

“What!? You heard that?” She asks back, surprised that I even knew of it. “I don’t remember seeing you there...”

“Ah, well, yes. I, um, did in fact hear that.” I supposed that it isn’t the nicest thing in the world to know someone was eavesdropping on your conversation.

“I see...” She says to me. “And what do you think I should do?”

“Eh?! You’re asking me? Umm....” I begin to think of any experience I might have of this. You know, experience with miscommunication between friends or possibly even experience with the delicate and extremely special connection childhood friends would have. It came up blank, absolutely zero experience with these things. “I don’t think I’m the best person to ask about these things...”

“Really? I just wanna hear your opinion, Setsuna-chan. Who knows, maybe a change in persepctive could be useful.” She tells me.

“If you say so...” I begin to think of what I would say. One of the biggest problems with that conversation was the confidence of Ayumu-chan. Maybe a change in venu could help with that. Somewhere more secluded... Where it would just be the two of them... maybe even somewhere with a nice romantic amiance... “Maybe you just need a better venue for talking?”

“Huh? What do you mean?” She asks, confused of what I meant by that.

“Well, I was just thinking that the clubroom isn’t the best place to hold a conversation, isn’t it?” I explain to her. “So, I was thinking that somewhere more conducive to conversation would be better. Perhaps a place where it would be just the two of you...”

“What are you suggesting, Setsuna-chan...?” She asks me. “Is this one of your plans?”

“Well, of course it is!” I tell her. “This wasn’t meant to be used now, but desperate time call for desperate measures.”

“And that would mean?” She asks, still not following.

“It’s time to initiate plan _d!_ ” I exclaim. “Ayumu-chan, You and Yuu-san will be going on a date!”

“A _d-d-d-date_!?” She screams, embarrassed by the thought.

“Ayumu-chan,” I take her hands in mine and look her in the eyes. Then I ask for something I figured I already had. “Do you trust me?”

For a while, there was silence... until she took a deep breath and replied. “Yes, Setsuna-chan. I trust you.”

For the first time this evening, in its full glory, I saw Ayumu-chan smile, and all I could think was,

“Perfect."

**IV. Bitter Bittersweet**

The aftermath of that evening was… interesting to say the least.

As of late Ayumu-chan’s been chatting with me more often. I guess she’s more than warmed up to the idea of a date with Yuu-san. Well, I guess anyone would be excited to ask their crush out on a date, that is, if they aren’t crushed by the very real and dangerous prospect of rejection, but I digress. Anyways, it’s all we’ve been talking about recently, and she’s quite excited, to say the least. Ayumu-chan even started making little plans while we were walking back to the train station.

_“So do you have anything in mind for your date or are we gonna have to plan everything from the beginning?” I ask my companion._

_“Well, I don’t think I have anything in mind for now.” Ayumu-chan replies._

_“Hmm, well I guess the first thing we have to think of would be where you would take her, right?” I ask._

_“Mhm!” She nods her head in agreement. “I imagine that would be the most important part.”_

_“What?!” I say in shock. “Surely, the company would be the most important part?!”_

_“Well, that should go without saying, no?” She asks back._

_“I guess so…” I say before we fall into a comfortable silence with the both of us in thought._

_Eventually, Ayumu-chan breaks the silence with an idea. She makes a face and holds her chin, thinking. “Well, there’s this café that we used to go to a lot in middle school, since it was near the campus, but since we’ve started going to Nijigasaki, we haven’t really had the chance to go there.”_

_“Sounds like a good idea!” I tell her. “Tapping into one of the roots of your long and storied friendship… outstanding move!”_

_“Mouu, Setsuna-chan, you make it sound like this is something I’ve been thinking of for ages…” she says to me._

_Don’t incriminate me. So, instead I suggest an alternative interpretation of my words. “Oorrrrr I’m trying to say that you make good ideas on the fly.”_

_“Fair, fair.” She relents. Before long our conversation devolves into idle chatter as we make our way to the train station._

So, beyond the venue, we’ve also planned out how and when she’ll ask Yuu-san out. Of course, it also had to be secluded, so Ayumu-chan told me that some time within the week, she’ll ask Yuu-san out when they walk home together. All in all, it’s great!

…

Or at least it should be great, shouldn’t it? This is a major milestone in what we’ve been working towards, and, not to mention, Ayumu-chan is super excited and hyped up about it.

So, why do I suddenly feel reluctant about it?

Perhaps that’s the wrong question to ask. It makes sense for the hype to die down when I’m no longer talking about it, no? But I suppose that this is more than just feeling less excitement about it.

Reluctance. Regret. Emptiness. All of them complicated and complex feelings that I don’t want to bother understanding, but still feel, nonetheless. But, then of course, that begs the question, why?

“… why do I feel this way?” I say out loud, asking nobody in particular.

Right now, I find myself alone in the student council room. It’s lunch, and this is where I usually stay.

Alone.

Though, I suppose the vice president is in her desk at the moment, but it’s not like any conversation happens here. For all intents and purposes, I’m basically here by myself. It’s never been a problem before, but now?

I hate it. I detest it. Why do I spend all this time in a room where I can’t be me? Why did I think that spending my days this way was okay?

…

 _Alright, settle down there Setsuna._ It wasn’t a problem before, but it’s become a problem now. There’s no reason it can’t go back to not being a problem, right? All we have to do is figure something out, and that’s all there is to it.

_Mou, Nana-chan, can’t you let me have my moment? I was about to make it a whole lot cooler!_

_No, we’re in the student council room, so It’s my turn to think._

_Fine, fine. You go and do your stuff._

Anyways, back to the problem at hand, I still don’t know why I feel this way, so the simplest way to go about things would to be to try and find out, no?

Maybe Ayumu-chan could help me out…

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

So, it turns out I couldn’t get Ayumu-chan to help, directly at least, since she doesn’t really have time to hang out right now. She seems to be incredibly busy this week. A fair amount of homework on top of planning and anticipating a date with Yuu-san can be quite the time-user.

Well, of course, I also have my own things to do. There’s homework and project that I have to finish before the term ends, and there’s also a fair amount of student council work that I have to get done. Though, all of that isn’t anything I can’t get done.

Despite us both being somewhat busy, we’ve found time to chat at night since we have each other’s contacts. We would often message each other in the evenings, sometimes even call each other. It’s… it’s been nice.

Sometimes she’d give me updates on how things are going on her end, things like little details about the date and how she would ask Yuu-san out. Just yesterday, from her, I found out how she asked Yuu-san out.

_“Setsuna-chan!” I hear her practically screaming through the speakers of my phone._

_“Yeah?” I reply, giggling a bit. “So, didya ask her out?”_

_“How can you say that so casually!? I’m literally freaking out here!” She yells back at me._

_“Sorry, sorry.” My amusement grows by the second. “So, c’mon, what happened?”_

_“Okay.” She takes a breath before retelling me what happened earlier. It was a simple affair, and it just happened too. The last I saw of the two girls was in school where they left for home together. It was during their walk home when Ayumu asked her out… “…and it just came out, I guess.”_

_“No build up or anything?” I ask her._

_“Nope.” She replied._

_“None at all?” I ask again, to be sure._

_“Nothing, it just came out! We were just there, on the sidewalk, walking side by side. We weren’t really talking, but it’s not like either of us are chatter boxes, you know. Plus, I guess there was that whole weird thing that happened last week…” Ayumu-chan starts rambling._

_“Ayumu-chan, back to the topic at hand.” I tell her._

_“Sorry, sorry. I was, um, rambling there.” She takes a moment to compose herself before continuing. “Well, what I meant to say was that I just asked her, out of the blue, if she wanted to go on a date. With no build up or anything.”_

_“I see.” Well, I can see why she would be freaking out right now. “Did she say yes?” I ask her._

_“Ah.” Suddenly she isn’t as frantic anymore. In a voice akin to someone swooning, she continues speaking. “Oh, Setsuna-chan, you should have been there! The moment she said yes, I could feel my heart skip a beat!” Something about hearing that… I didn’t quite like it._

_“That’s great!” I lied, or at least I think I did. I continue, mustering all the enthusiasm that I couldat the time. “I’m so happy for you! This is exactly the development I wanted.”_

_“Yeah… I guess that was the hard part, right?” She asks me in reply. “Should be smooth sailing from here, no?”_

_“I mean… are you ready to talk to her?” I ask back. “When you talk to her, will you make sure she knows how you feel?”_

_“Do you think I’m ready?” She asks, clearly unsure of herself._

_“Eh? Does it matter?” Shouldn’t she be the one who knows if she’s ready?_

_“Well… Sometimes I have trouble believing in myself you know? Usually, Yuu-chan helps with things like this, reassuring me and telling me that I can do it. When she says it, I can really find myself believing it, you know?” She explains to me. “But, now, I can’t… she can’t do that for me… so, Setsuna-chan, I suppose I’ll ask again… Do you think I’m ready?”_

_So that’s how it is, huh? You really need to coddle her less, Yuu-san. Realistically, the easy way to go about this would be to just tell her he’s ready. It would make things go smoothly, and perhaps less problems would arise… But is that really what I should be doing? Going with the easy path, knowing it wouldn’t really be helping her? If I were to go along with this, then I wouldn’t be changing things for her. Right now, more than anything Ayumu-chan is my friend… friend… it’s not something I can say about many people._

_“I think you’re ready, Ayumu-chan.” In the end I decided to be selfish. I… I like the feeling. I like that she trusts me. I like that she can let herself rely on me. And as much as I would want her to grow as a person… I also want her to be happy._

_“Thank you, Setsuna-chan. I really appreciate it.” She says, more at ease than she was earlier._

_“Yeah, anytime.” I reply. “I should, um… I think I’m being called. Talk to you later?”_

_“Yeah, see you around.” Ayumu-chan hangs up. I take a deep breath to process what just happened, and from what I could surmise… I still don’t understand why I feel what I feel._

Eventually I asked her to text me the details to their date. Without asking, she sent me the agenda she brought up. Now, why would I need it? Well, I plan to watch of course!

…

Perhaps that didn’t come out right.

What I mean to say is that I plan to follow them around on their date. I need to see the fruits of my labour, you know? The date will occur on the weekend, a few days from now, so I suppose I have some time to think of a disguise to make sure they don’t notice me.

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

How do people usually prepare for dates? I mean, of course people would try and make sure the look nice. But then what exactly would they do?

Do they focus on refining the already strong points of their appearance? Of course, the advantages of this would be to accentuate and emphasize what would be their main selling points as a person. For example, I imagine someone like Karin-san would wear something somewhat sexy to put further emphasis on her, admittedly, heavenly curves. Geez, what a sight that would be…

I’m getting carried away! I can’t be distracted from the topic at hand by the thought of some really nice thighs…

Enough of that! The point of all of that preface is that, in my well thought out disguise that I’m totally proud of, I’m currently walking to the venue of Ayumu-chan and Yuu-san’s date to watch the two of them be happy and gay, and I’m wondering what outfit Ayumu-chan decided to go with. I asked her earlier, but all that was met with was a _“Well, that’s a secret, Setsuna-chan!”_ said in the most chipper voice you could imagine. Didn’t really leave me much clue as to what it was, did it.

Though, I suppose there isn’t much use in thinking about it now. I’m gonna see them in a bit, anyways. So, for now, let’s think a bit about the café that I’m headed to. It’s called _Patisserie Table_. They specialize in cakes which would make sense given the name, and all the reviews I’ve read say that the food there is delicious. That is to be expected given Ayumu-chan and Yuu-san’s good taste in food. Personally, the cheesecake and creampuffs excite me the most.

When I arrive at the café, I make sure to check that the two girls are already here. It would be a bit weird if I got here before them, wouldn’t it? The café has a decent crowd. Though, at this time of the day, it shouldn’t be surprising. Spotting Ayumu-chan’s familiar red hair in a table near the window, I take note of an empty table near them. I’ll be sure to take that one so I could listen in on their conversations.

After ordering and paying for a nice, sweet creampuff I take a seat pay attention to the two girls. Right now, they’re just in casual conversation, the kind that you’d expect would just happen between long-time friends.

“…at quiz earlier was really tough, wasn’t it?” I hear Yuu-san casually say to the girl across her.

“Eh? Didn’t you study for it?” Ayumu-chan asks back.

“Ah,” She looks a bit embarrassed. “I _may_ have been a bit busy last night.” Yuu-san admits.

“Don’t overwork yourself, Yuu-chan.” Ayumu-chan says, scolding her friend. “What were you doing last night?” She inquires.

“I was talking with Kanata-chan and Shiziuku-chan!” Yuu-san happily says.

“Oh, and what were you guys chatting about?” Ayumu-chan continues to ask.

“They had some cool ideas for things we could do for performances.” Yuu-san explains. “Who knew how versatile a bed could be on stage?” A bed on stage, it would make sense for Kanata-chan, but I wonder how Shiziku-chan figured we could use it.

Ayumu-chan responds, “Really? Sounds like some of their ideas would be fun.” Fun? Can’t say. Interesting, definitely.

After those words were spoken, a silence builds up. One that neither of them seemed particularly fond of.

Then, at a moment’s notice, Yuu-san speaks. “Ayumu-chan…” She calls the name of her friend.

“Hm? Yes, Yuu-chan?” Ayumu-chan replies in acknowledgement.

“I’m glad you wanted to hang out today.” Yuu-san says, somewhat out of the blue, with her usual smile plastered on her face. Somehow, I couldn’t think of it as anything but sincere. More than anything, I imagine Ayumu-chan would love what she’s hearing.

“Eh?! W-Where’s th-this coming from all of a sudden?” The girl in question exclaims, embarrassed by the declaration.

“Well, um, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve been a bit busier recently…” Yuu-san begins to say.

“Yeah…”

“It’s just… It’s nice. That we get to do this and all.” She finishes. “Thanks, Ayumu-chan.” Barely, just barely, I can see the shape of a smile form on Ayumu-chan’s face. I don’t have a full view of Ayumu-chan, but it’s not hard for me to imagine that she would smiling right now. What a nice smile she has…

“Yuu-chan… Of course I’d do something like this. I care too much to not do anything.” Ayumu-chan says. “You’re… you’re very important to me, Yuu-chan.” The same sincerity I felt from Yuu-san’s words, I felt in Ayumu-chan’s words. I… I don’t like it.

“Geez, that was soooo cheesy, Ayumu-chan.” Yuu-san says in reply. “I’m happy to hear you feel that way.”

Ayumu-chan quickly replied. “Yuu-chan, it’s not jus-” Yuu-san quickly interrupts her.

“Also, you’re a lot more open about our feelings, aren’t you?” She says to Ayumu-chan. “I bet that Setsuna-chan has something to do with it.”

“Setsuna-chan?” Me? What would I have done to-

“Yeah! You two have been hanging out a lot recently, no?” Yuu-san asks.

“Well, yeah, I have. It’s been really cool getting to know her.” Aww. It’s been really cool getting to know you too, Ayumu-chan! It’s not often that I get to make friends, so I really cherish this _friendship_ we have.

 _Friendship_ , huh?

“Has it now? That’s nice.” Yuu-san comments.

As that really all it is between us? A _friendship_? It must be right?

“Yeah… you remember that lunch I made for you last week?” Yikes. Not my greatest moment, to say the least. Though I guess it ended up well. I still remember Ayumui-chan’s note… _“The Setsuna-chan I know would never let a stumble in the road make them give up!”_ … I still remember how happy I was when I first read it. To think that I’ve left such an impression on her…

“Yeah. It was really good! I guess any food you make is good in the first place. I enjoy it when you cook for me.” Yuu-san says to Ayumu-chan.

“I’m glad to hear it.” Ayumu-chan replies. “Well, I just figured I’d mention it, but Setsuna-chan actually helped me out with it.” Eh? What did I do!? If anything, I made things more difficult, no? “Aside from helping me cook, she can be really useful when going to the groceries.” Oh, I guess there was that as well.

“Oh really?” Yuu-san says, surprised. “I don’t think I’ve ever tried her food before that. Well none of the other girls from the club have ever mentioned anything about it…” Ehh??? They’ve all tried my cooking before, no?

“I don’t know if she’s cooked for any of them before.” Ayumu-chan says.

“Oh, our cake’s here! Let’s dig in.”

“Sure!” Yuu-san replies. And, so, their conversation was put on pause in favour of a delectable strawberry shortcake.

“Excuse me, miss?” I hear a voice call me. “Your creampuff?” I look up and see person who took my order earlier. I guess the cashiers also serve food here. Trying not to think much about anything. Sweets always make people feel better, no? Right now, though,

=-=-=-=-= This is Potato =-=-=-=-=

Sweets didn’t really help. The creampuff sure tasted good, though.

How do I feel right now? Uneasy? Down? Confused? Complicated? Heck, maybe even all of the above. Ever since that evening with Ayumu-chan last week, I’ve been like this, no? Sometimes I’d go back to my usual self: energetic, emotional, and downright happy… but how much of that is me just not liking how I feel, not accepting my emotions? How much of that is real?

And, so, as expected, I still don’t understand a thing.

Reluctantly, I find myself following the pair to a nearby park. If I didn’t feel so uneasy about all of this, I’d probably comment on how this would be a good place to confess. I mean, at this time of the day, not only would it be empty, but the lighting of a setting sun would really set the mood, wouldn’t it? But alas, I will not mention it. A short walk away from the café was a nice quaint park. I had to follow them a bit further away so that they wouldn’t notice me. It wouldn’t do well for me if they find out I’m following them, would it.

Now, why am I still here? I suppose I just don’t like the idea of leaving things unfinished. I came here to see the results of my past two weeks, so I intend to see it through, no matter how I may be feeling.

By the time I make it to the park, I see the two of them sitting on adjacent swings. Besides them, the area was clear, so I figured I’d have to be a bit creative with how I hide myself. Luckily there are some tree’s behind them. A suitable place to eavesdrop, me thinks.

“-ell, we’re here.” I hear Yuu-san say. “So what did you want to talk about?”

“Yuu-chan,” I hear Ayumu-chan begin to say. C’mon, Ayumu-chan you can do this! Believe in yourself! “I have something to say, so please let me finish before you reply.”

“Okay. Go ahead, then” Yuu-san says to Ayumu-chan.

A silence follows, one full of reluctance and indecision. No matter what’s going on with me, at this moment, there’s nothing I want more than for Ayumu-chan to go through with this. This is the moment. This is her chance. This is the time to make your feelings known.

“Yuu-chan…” Of course, there’s always the possibility of failure, of rejection, “We’ve known each other since we were just kids. That’s crazy to think about sometime, you know?” and just as likely is the possibility of success, but that’s can’t stop you now, Ayumu-chan!

“And we’ve been best friends throughout that time… as kids when I was just a shy girl who couldn’t make friends… as a middle schooler who had trouble making any decisions or doing anything for that matter, you were there for me… and most recently in high school, your interest in school idols and making me join the club, I’ve come to love it as much as you do, to be honest. I love performing songs on stage. I love to see people enjoy my performances, and most of all, I love to see you watch me. But…”

She pauses. You shouldn’t let fear control you. Show her your feelings! “Yuu-chan, I’ve come to love something than that, more than performing songs…” Tell her you love her! _Love_ , huh? “For a while now I’ve been meaning to say this…” The feeling of euphoria when you’re with the one that you love… “Especially recently, it’s been on my mind….” the feeling of undeniable relief when they affirm your feelings… “Yuu-chan, I…” the absolute happiness you get when they’re happy as well.

And then it hit me. I’ve fallen in love with Ayumu-chan.

“I’m in love with you Yuu-chan.” As soon as I heard those words, I felt my legs collapse beneath me.

Stupid! Stupid Setsuna! How… how could this happen? Though, I suppose I couldn’t help myself. Ayumu-chan is a wonderful person, even more so when you get to know her… She’s extremely caring and patient. She has to be if she managed to put up with me… Besides that she’s always wonderful to be around… she’s such a pretty person with a smile that could brighten my saddest days…

“Ayumu-chan…” I hear Yuu-san begin to say. “I-I’m so happy to hear that.” Somehow, I felt my heart fall at those words. “My dear Ayumu-chan, you’re… you’re in my heart as well.”

“Oh Yuu-chan!” I hear her stand up, presumably to go to Yuu-san.

I, too, stand up, leaving the area. I… I don’t think I want to hear anything else.

I’ve fallen in love with her, and she’s in love with someone else. And more than anything right now… it hurts.

But… she’s confessed, and her feelings were accepted. She’s happy now, and somehow, I can take solace in that.

Walking back home I can’t help but feel bitter bittersweet.

**V. Friends – epilogue**

It’s been a while since that scene at the park, and, to say the least, everyone’s been really happy for them, me included! It’s hard not to be happy for two friends finding love in each other. It’s a beautiful occurrence really. Talking to the two of them, they really couldn’t be happier.

Though, it does hurt sometimes, seeing the two of them together like that. I can’t help but wonder sometimes, “What if that was me?” or “Would she be that happy if it was me?” Truly, I feel awful when I think that, but I can’t help it… I can’t just change the way I feel about her.

Right now, I’m at a café, just ion Odiba, waiting for Ayumu-chan. It’s the evening before Christmas day, and she wanted to meet up. Of course, despite what happened, or rather, because of what happened, Ayumu-chan was more determined than ever to make time to hang out with me even with her newly found girlfriend. “You’re one of my closest friends now, Setsuna-chan! Of course, I’d make time for you!” she would say. It was nice to hear her say that, but of course it hurt a bit. _Friend_ , not the nicest word to hear from the girl you’re in love with, but whatever.

“Setsuna-chan!” I look up to face the angelic voice calling me. “Sorry I’m late!”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I didn’t wait long.” if it’s for you, Ayumu-chan, I don’t mind waiting.

“That’s good to hear.” She replies. “Did you order anything yet?”

“I felt in the mood for some cold tea, so that’s all I got.” I tell her.

“Good!” Huh? “Because she’s ordering us some creampuffs to share!”

“She?” I look to the counter and see Yuu-san talking to the cashier. “Oh, Yuu-san’s here?”

“Yeah, sorry I didn’t say anything.” She apologizes. “You don’t mind, do you?”

“Of course not!” I mean, I did look forward to spending time with Ayumu-chan, but this isn’t bad either.

“Good, good.” She mumbles. “I just figured it would be nice to spend time with both my girlfriend and a close friend, you know?”

“Yeah, yeah, I getcha, so don’t worry about it.” I tell her.

“Hey guys!” Yuu-san appears with a tray of creampuffs. “I hope this is enough for us.”

“It should be fine, Yuu.” Ayumu-chan tells her girlfriend.

“Well, Ayumu, if ever you want more just tell me.” Yuu-san replies.

Watching the two of them like this… It hurts. It really does. But, somehow, it also makes me happy seeing them like this. I helped two people find love, I helped them work out their feelings, and, most of all, I helped Ayumu-chan find happiness, and that makes me happy on its own.

I once asked myself why the childhood friend never wins. I thought that maybe it’s that they’re too timid. I also guessed that maybe they would give up too easily. Knowing what I know now, those two are still possibilities, but let me propose a third one.

Before anything else, to the childhood friend, the main character is their friend. Before anything else, the childhood friend wants them to be happy, no matter what. Maybe that’s why they don’t try. Maybe they know that the mc would be happier with someone else and that’s enough for them.

Watching Yuu-san and Ayumu-chan together like this… I can’t help but think that either.

My friend, Ayumu-chan is happy, and, truly, that’s enough for me.

**_Fin._ **

**Author's Note:**

> This one took quite a while to finish, so i hope it wasn't too bad. As i mentioned earlier, this work was somewhat inspired by @myonglette's SetsuAyu comic series. Y'all should totally read it if you haven't.
> 
> You can follow me on twitter(@RangerFinch) if you wanna possibly see progress with what stuff I maybe writing.


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